Pages

'The best books, reviewed with insight and charm, but without compromise.' - author Jackie French

Friday, 25 July 2014

Review: Feast for Wombat

Wombat has been happy burrowed under the ground, but he finally decides it is time to come out into the sunlight for a dust bath. Wombat sees his friends Goanna, Magpie and Dingo and marvels at the amazing things they can do. Compared to them, he doesn’t feel very special at all.

Feast for Wombat is a lovely story about friendship and the power of encouragement. Wombat can easily see the talents of his friends and he praises their skills, but he isn’t quite so good at noticing what he can do well himself until they encourage him in return.
Best-selling Australian author Sally Morgan teams with new illustrator Tania Erzinger to create this sweet story with a distinctly Australian setting. The story highlights four native Australian animals as Wombat compares himself with his friends and decides that he is certainly not as special and skilled as they are.

What I enjoyed most was the way the animals responded to Wombat’s encouragement. He praises his friends for their achievements and abilities. They thank him and offer to teach him how to do what they do. There is no sense of competition or ranking, simply an acceptance that each animal has something that makes them special.

Wombat’s challenge is to realise that he has special skills too. When he can’t see them for himself, his friends step in to make sure that he understands how much they appreciate him and how amazing they think he is.

This enjoyable story is a great way to help children understand that we all have something to contribute, including taking the time to encourage others.